Umeboshi
by White Sakura of Hope
Summary: The villagers had always told her that a normal girl like her should stay away from the strange child that was Uchiha Itachi, but Haruno Sakura wasn't a normal girl to begin with. ItaSaku non-massacre AU.
1. A Serendipitous Finding

_Umeboshi_

_—  
_

_The villagers had always warned her to stay away from the strange child that was Uchiha Itachi, but Haruno Sakura wasn't a normal girl to begin with. ItaSaku non-massacre AU._

_Chapter One: A Serendipitous Finding_

Sakura saw a flash of shadow from the corner of her eye, and shot a kunai with deadly precision towards the rustling bushes. It was unusual for anyone to be around this training ground during this time of the day. It was lunchtime, and the only reason she frequented this training ground was only because she observed that this part of the forest was usually vacant around this time of the day, giving her abundant privacy. She approached the bushes cautiously, and was surprised to see that her kunai did not pierce anything but pinned the wrapping cloth of a bento box to the trunk of a tree. Despite her senses telling her to just leave it alone, in case the owner came back for it, her curiosity won the battle. She pulled on her kunai and cradled the bento box in her arms to take a closer look.

It looked like any ordinary homemade lunch box, wrapped in a dark navy square cloth. There was a knot on the top where the corners of the cloth gathered, which served as a sufficient handle for convenient holding. Placing the bento box on the ground, she untied the knot and spread out the navy cloth. To her surprise, she found little family emblems on the four corners of the square- little prints of white and red fans. Uchiha fans.

Idly tracing her finger around the elegant design, she noticed that there was a shuriken-shaped symbol in the middle of the fan, suggesting that this piece of cloth, along with the bento, belonged to someone in the head family.

_Sasuke?_

Being one of the only few who knew about Sakura's training ground in the middle of the forest, Sasuke was the first that came into her mind. She wiped her head around to scan the area, and expanded her chakra, hoping to sense any traces of his chakra signature. Unfortunately there was none.

_Must have been in a hurry, huh._ Inner Sakura supplied, and Sakura nodded as it was a plausible conclusion.

Looking at the bento box, Sakura's hand traced the elegant mahogany colored container. It had a very elegant imprint of cherry blossom flowers on the surface of the lid, and Sakura smiled at the coincidence. Not that she still harbor any feelings for the Uchiha other than familial love, but habits die hard.

As if telling her to make good use of the bento, Sakura's stomach growled, and she realized that she had been too absorbed in her training that she'd forgotten to stop and eat lunch. Tentatively, she lifted the lid and was overwhelmed by the delicious and familiar scent of Mikoto's onigiri. The sides of the triangles were flat because they pressed hard against the sides of container. Other than that, the onigiri looked perfect. She silently thanked god for letting her kunai stop the bento box from crashing to the ground. A drop from the tree tops to the ground would undoubtedly shatter the box and destroy what was now her lunch.

After scanning with her chakra to determine that the onigiri were fresh, She picked one up and took a small bite, closing her eyes to savor the taste. It was just the way she remembered it as Mikoto used to pack the young genin team lunch on their missions. Her bites gradually turned larger and she soon ravenously devoured the entire box of onigiri.

Satiated, she closed the lid and wrapped the cloth back into place. She would wash the box, and return it to Mikoto tonight when she visits for dinner. She gathered her training gears, and started to head home.

—

"Ojamashimasu!" Sakura called out in a sing-song voice as she skipped down the hallway that led from the entrance of the compound to the kitchen, where she was certain Mikoto would be preparing for dinner.

"Fugaku-ji!" she called out as she skipped past the man on the hallway. Fugaku gave a small smile, and nodded to acknowledge her presence. Couple years ago, if someone had told her that one day she would be skipping around the Uchiha compound like she owned it, she would had never believed it. Throughout the years, however, she had grown fond of the Uchiha couple as they had her, and had become a daughter that the couple never had.

Squealing loudly, Sakura skidded past the entrance to the kitchen, and had to hold on to the door frame to completely stop and balance herself. She reemerged through the entrance, one hand behind her head, and gave the stunned female Uchiha a sheepish smile.

"Mou, Sakura-chan, Naruto-kun's habits are rubbing off on you!" The comment drew a even wider smile onto the girl's face.

"Mikoto-ba!" Sakura launched herself at the said woman for a tight embrace. On the side, Sasuke gave a disgusted grunt.

"Sakura, do you _have to_ be so mushy every time you see my mother?" The dark-haired boy commented, only to earn a glare from his teammate.

"Well hello to you too, Mr. Don't-touch-me." She stuck her tongue out at him. "At least I don't take motherly love for granted like you do!"

Wisely, Sasuke did not comment on what she said. He knew that Sakura had lost her mother at a young age, and her father had always opposed of her being a ninja, and thus moved away to a civilian village somewhere else. The poor girl lived alone, and that was why Mikoto took sympathy and invited her frequently to their house.

_However strong she might appear to be, Sakura needs her share of love in the world, too._ Mikoto had told Sasuke one daya while ago when he inquired why it was that she had taken such fondness of his teammate. Sasuke knew perfectly that it was just an excuse for his exuberant mother to acquire the daughter that she had wanted but never had.

Suddenly remembering about the box that she had found on her training ground earlier of the day, Sakura brought it out of her bag. "Ne, Mikoto-ba, did Sasuke lose his bento today?"

The raven-haired woman looked confused at her question, and shook her head. "Why do you ask?"

"I found this when I was training today." She held out the bento box. "I saw the little shuriken looking symbol in the middle of the fan, and thought it might be Sasuke's."

"Hm, I don't know if _he_ packed lunch today…" Mikoto accepted the bundle and proceeded on placing it on the countertop, opening the cloth.

"Well it doesn't matter, as long as it gets back to you guys."

"Thank you for returning this, Sakura-chan." Mikoto said as she worked on the knot Sakura tied.

"I swear, Mikoto-ba, your onigiri are the most delicious ones in the entire fire country! If only I could cook like that…"

"Oh…" Having to finally open the intricate and tight knot that Sakura made, Mikoto's eyes widen as she immediately recognize the box and knew its owner. So _he_ did pack lunch today. "You've got it wrong, Sakura-chan."

"Aw, don't need to be shy, Mikoto-ba! It's true!" The pink-haired girl exclaimed cheerfully, completely oblivious that Mikoto was talking about something entirely different. "Now my husband _has _to able to cook like that, since kitchenware and I are mortal enemies."

"Did you hear that, Sasuke-kun? If you don't learn how to cook, Sakura's going to leave you!" Completely forgotten about her previous denial, Mikoto took the chance to push the two teammates together.

"Kaa-san, how many times do I have to tell you Sakura and I are not together!" Sasuke said with a tint of pink across the bridge of his nose.

"Can't blame an old woman for dreaming." Mikoto joked as she went back to her stove. Being culinary-ly challenged, Sakura stood at the sink by the stove to help Mikoto rinse her vegetables. Being too absorbed in their conversation, the trio didn't sense the appearance of the elder brother of the family until he stood behind his mother to give her a peck on the cheeks for acknowledgment.

"Itachi-kun, welcome back." Mikoto welcomed her son by turning around and giving a pat on his head like she would when he was younger and shorter. He frowned.

"Mother, I'm no longer a child."

"You always are to me." Mikoto's sharp eyes scanned her son for any injury, and she frowned when she saw scratches on his arm and cheeks. Her onyx eyes turned serious.

"Mission?"

Itachi shook his head, knowing that his mother was inquiring about the difficulty of the mission. "Stubborn pack of rouge nins." The confident tone of his voice reassured Mikoto that the mission was a success, though at this point she cared more about her son's well-being than whether the mission was successful. She raised a hand cloaked with glowing chakra and was about to start healing her son when Sakura stopped her.

"Mikoto-ba, let me take care of this." Sakura flashed the older woman a smile. "Now I can make myself useful rather than being a hindrance in your kitchen."

"You are never a hindrance, Sakura-chan," the older woman turned towards her stove and proceeded to tend to their dinner. "but thank you."

"No prob." Sakura put down the vegetable in her hand and shut off the water. Seeing that Itachi had made his way towards the dining table and settled down on a seat, Sakura followed him. He was still dressed in his ANBU garb that was, to Sakura's distaste, bloodily stained.

"Itachi-san." She acknowledged politely and sat on the adjacent seat, reaching for his scratched arms. He tensed at her touch, and Sakura cooed, "Relax, I know what I'm doing…" A layer of green chakra cloaked her hand as she pressed it on the scratches, and she jokingly added, "…hopefully."

The reaction was immediate. Itachi extracted his arm from her hold with the speed of light, and eyed her angrily, from what Sakura deduced from the annoyed glint in his eyes. Chuckles bubbled from her lips. "I'm joking, Itachi-san." She took his arm gently and proceeded on healing him again.

"I fail to see how joking about a patient's well-being is funny." He commented and watched her with a careful but intense glare, making sure she wasn't trying anything.

"Itachi-san, relax for a bit. Have some fun." Having done healing the scratches on his arms, she raised her hand to cup his cheek gently to seal the cut across his cheekbone. He grew even more rigid at such intimate touch, if that was even possible, and his eyes darted to the side, finding the floor more interesting than the sea-foam green eyes in front of him. The rest of the healing went by in awkward silence. Half an hour later, after carefully giving Itachi a full-body injury scan, Sakura completed healing everything that needed attention.

"Your assistance is appreciated." The raven-haired man stood up and left. Sakura sighed, and whispered, "You're welcome, Itachi-san."

Even after many years of interaction with the family, Itachi was the only one whom she hadn't been able to get to know and be comfortable around. She thought, even the uptight Fugaku warmed to her, why couldn't it be the same with Itachi? There seemed to be an invisible barrier between them, but it only served to motivate Sakura even more to figure out the mystery named Itachi.

The villagers had always warned her to stay away from the strange child that was Uchiha Itachi, but Haruno Sakura wasn't a normal girl to begin with.

—

The dinner passed by quickly and Sakura bid goodnight to the family, but not before promising Mikoto that she'll visit again soon, Sasuke that she'll spar with him sometime, and Fugaku that she'll go over political reports with him once she had time. After series of hugs, Mikoto finally, though reluctantly, let Sakura leave.

Retreating back to the kitchen, Mikoto went to the sink to do the dishes. Her hand brushed past the mahogany container, and she suddenly remembered what it was the she was telling Sakura before she lost her train of thoughts earlier. She washed and dried the container, and placed the folded square cloth on top of the lid before calling out for her elder son, who sat quietly at the dining table reading a scroll.

"Ne, Itachi-kun," she said while placing the container next to Itachi's scroll. "I heard you lost your bento today."

"Hn." he replied, shifting his gaze from his scroll to the cloth folded on top of the lid.

Aghast and concerned for her child health, she exclaimed, "You didn't eat today?"

"I managed to acquire food in a nearby village during the mission." he replied, soothing her mother's concern, and resumed his attention to the scroll.

"Anyways, Sakura-chan found this at her training ground," Mikoto proceeded to get up from her seat, and walked towards the door. "and she said the onigiri tasted delicious."

"Hn." Itachi replied, not paying particularly much attention to her mother's rambling about the pink-haired kunoichi whom his mother adored.

"…and you know, she said that she wishes her _husband_ will be able to cook like that." Mikoto whispered, halfway through the exiting the kitchen, knowing fully that her son will be able to catch the soft comment.

Itachi's head shot up and his eyes connected with his mother's, a strange glint in his eyes. Mikoto smiled inwardly.

_Finally_, she thought, glad that there was finally a comment that incited some reaction within her socially stoic son.

* * *

…_to be continued._

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Author's Notes:

1. This story is _un-beta_ed, so sorry that you had to put up with my poor grammar and such. Hee.

2. Regarding the title of this story, Umeboshi, the explanation from Wikipedia says:

_**Umeboshi**__ (__梅干__; literally "dried ume") are pickled ume fruits. Ume is a species of fruit-bearing tree in the genus Prunus, which is often called a plum but is actually more closely related to the apricot. Umeboshi are a type of tsukemono, or traditional Japanese pickled food, and are very popular in Japan. In Japan, it is used in various dishes as side dishes with breakfast, rice balls for lunch, boiled and seasoned for dinner._

3. Regarding Itachi's character in this story, I'm trying to portray him as an exceptional perfectionist prodigy who is a social retard. I don't think I'm doing that very well…yet. Still practicing. Hehe.

4. I'm not really sure where I want to take this story yet. I have several chapters in mind, but the more serious parts of the plot still need to be created. Want to help? Always welcome.

5. I think I have something with updating or posting new stories on Valentine's days. Anyway, Happy single awareness day!

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_Love it? Hate it? Plot suggestions? Interested Beta? Just want to talk?_

_Post a review or drop a PM, I'd love to get to know you. :)_


	2. Onigiri Delivery

_Umeboshi_

_—  
_

_The villagers had always warned her to stay away from the strange child that was Uchiha Itachi, but Haruno Sakura wasn't a normal girl to begin with. ItaSaku non-massacre AU._

_Chapter Two: Onigiri Delivery_

Despite Itachi's effort to keep it concealed, it had become a known fact throughout the years to the Uchiha family that their child prodigy was definitely _not_ a morning person. Unless his duties demanded him to, which oftentimes was the case, Uchiha Itachi was never the one to _willingly_ wake up to the sunshine, to his mother's knowledge. So imagine her astonishment when one early morning Mikoto woke up to find her kitchen in a mess and her elder son gone missing.

Mikoto mused; it was a non-active day too, as the Hokage had required all shinobi to take a recovery day after missions to lower the stress level.

The dark-haired woman walked towards her beloved kitchen countertop, and took in the messy sight. With a quick glance, she was able to deduce what her son was up to in the morning. The lid of the rice cooker was laid as far as it could be from the its counterpart; the triangular rice ball mold bathed in a bowl of water in the sink, unwashed; several sheets of seaweed were scattered around the countertop; the container that held umeboshi was placed uncapped and neglected, a pair of chopsticks placed over the top. She dully noted that a certain mahogany container and a piece of cloth had gone missing also, and Mikoto silently wondered what could have caused her son to be in such a hurry that he did not even have the time to clean up.

Upon seeing that there was still rice left in the rice cooker, she decided to use the materials already laid out for her, however in a messy array they were, and make onigiri for her family's breakfast. She rolled up her sleeve, and gone to work.

"What's with the mess?" Fugaku inquired, having to just enter the kitchen and seeing the unorganized manner the countertop was in. He poked his head over his wife's shoulder to get a look at what was going to be his breakfast. "Onigiri?"

Mikoto gave her husband a light chuckle, and said, "Your son decided to wake up early in the morning and wreck havoc in the kitchen, leaving all these delicious leftovers behind. I couldn't just stand around and not use them."

Fugaku's eyes widen for a second at the information. "Itachi?"

"Mhm…" Mikoto replied as her hands shaped the rice into a perfect triangle without the mold.

"Isn't today…" Fugaku trailed off, walking away from his wife to retrieve an apple from the top of the dining table.

"Yes, according to my knowledge, he does not have a mission scheduled for today. He just came back from one yesterday." Mikoto set a plate of onigiri in front of her husband, and took a seat across from him.

Fugaku arched an eyebrow after hearing his wife's confirmation. "Interesting…"

Mikoto placed a gentle hand on her husband's, and said with tears brimming in her eyes, "Dear, I think our son is growing up."

—

He observed her from the rooftops, his chakra concealed in order to hide his presence. He would not call it stalking; the act was just too degrading for a man of his status. It was merely…observing. Yes, a training to enhance his observation. Observation training.

The target of interest was completely oblivious of his watching as she strolled through the streets in a carefree manner, occasionally stopping to engage in conversations with the vendors. After many hours of following her, he concluded that she was indeed a very well liked person around town.

Itachi mentally sighed (because there was just no way was he to do it outwardly). If it weren't for his mother's comment yesterday, he would not find his curious side wondering about the pink-haired kunoichi. There had only been several occasions in which he had engaged in full-blown intellectual conversation with her, and he couldn't help but admit that they were very entertaining and that her intelligence was enough to match his own. It had also been known that she was the apprentice of the renowned Hokage, and had established a world-wide reputation of her own. She was very well-liked by his family, and was considered a valuable companion even in the eye of his very condescending father. All in all, she seemed to be the perfect kunoichi of their generation.

However, he had never seen her fight. He had never seemed to understand how an emotionally driven girl like her (as he observed from her interaction with his family) could become as strong as the others said. He had never known her, and he didn't have the intention of knowing her until now.

—

Sakura stopped in her tracks to look towards the sky. Judging by the position of the sun, and the growing crowd on the streets walking towards various restaurants, she deduced that it was early midday, which also meant it was her nearing her training time.

She leaped from the ground and swiftly jumped towards the forest using the rooftops, conveniently avoiding the traffic on the ground. Upon arriving at her destination, she slowed down as she sensed another presence in the clearing. She smirked. It seemed that she'll have company for her training session today.

Hooking her finger through the loop of a kunai in her pouch, she got into defense stance as she surveyed her surroundings. Several shuriken flew towards her from a tree behind her, but she blocked them by throwing her kunai. She closed her eyes and expanded her chakra, attempting to find the position of her attacker and identify his chakra signature. However, she was taken off guard when someone whispered softly by her ears.

"Hasn't anyone told you _not_ to close your eyes when in the presence of an enemy?"

Sakura's eyes shot open as her arm instinctively drew back in attempt to elbow the person. However, all she met was air.

On the other side of the clearing stood someone whom Sakura assumed was her offender. He was dressed in carefree black slacks and a sleeveless fit top, showing off his muscular biceps and lean form. From his hands dangled a box wrapped in navy cloth that looked awfully familiar.

As her eyes reached the face of her previous opponent, and all she could do was gape at him, her jaw dropping from her face to the ground.

"It-Itachi…san?" Sakura managed to spit out as she wondered what in the seven hell was the aforementioned man doing at her supposedly private and secluded training section. "How did you know where I was?"

Itachi arched an eyebrow at her question. "Do not appear so surprised. It'll take an idiot to not to determine your position with your chakra bouncing off the trees everywhere."

"Che." Sakura wiped her head to the side and crossed her arms in front of her chest at his insult. The action only made Itachi smirk at how childish she appeared to be.

"Do you require any assistance?" Being Sakura, she couldn't bring herself to ignore anyone for a prolonged period of time. She slowly turned to face the Uchiha and clinically scanned over his body for injuries.

Itachi shook his head, and held out the arm that held the navy clothed package. "Here."

Sakura eyed the package warily but accepted it. She untied the knot on the top and met the familiar mahogany container with cherry blossom prints.

"Oh!" She squealed excitedly as she found onigiri inside the bento box. "I didn't know that high esteemed ANBU captains are also lunch delivery men!"

"It has come to my mother's attention that you frequently skip lunch in exchange for training time." Itachi said, clarifying the origin of the bento. "She grew concerned."

"Thank you for brining this to me. I _am _starving." Sakura beamed at the Uchiha so brightly that he averted his eyes to stare at the grass next to her feet. Sakura swore she saw a crack in his usual stoic face as a _tiny_ tint of red spread across his nose. "Please also extend my thanks to Mikoto-ba."

"Hn." He replied, and turned around to walk away. However, he was stopped by Sakura's tug on the back of his shirt. He tensed at the contact.

"Would you like to share with me?" She asked timidly, cheeks stained pink. "I don't think I can finish this on my own…"

Itachi turned his head to regard the girl behind him from the corner of his eyes. His eyes trained to where her hand connected with his shirt.

One second, Sakura was staring directly into Itachi's eyes, but the next, Sakura found herself grasping onto nothing but air.

That damn Uchiha performed a teleportation jutsu on her.

Sakura's anger flared and she puffed her cheeks. "Could have just said no…" She stomp her feet childishly towards the trunk of a tree, and settled down next to it to begin eating.

—

The constant visit from the elder one of Uchiha brothers continued throughout the week and she wasn't complaining at all. Everyday, he would bring from Mikoto a box of onigiri bento, and everyday, the flavor of the onigiri would vary. The mahogany container would always find a way back to the Uchihas on its own. Sakura thought it must have been that Mikoto performed a jutsu to make it disappear whenever she finished. Mikoto's onigiri were truly _very_ delicious, and Sakura was very thankful to have a constant meal from day to day.

—

Mikoto was running her daily errands when she spotted a head of bright pink in the midst of the crowded street. She agilely crossed the swarming crowd and quickly made her way to the stand where Sakura was purchasing a couple of fruits.

"Sakura-chan." She called out.

Turning her head around, Sakura identified Mikoto immediately. A bright smile bloomed on her face. "Mikoto-ba!" She engulfed the older woman in one of her exuberant and tight hugs and the woman reciprocated whole-heartedly.

"Ne, Mikoto-ba, I've been meaning to say it but I haven't had the time to drop by the house to express how thankful I am for your bento everyday!"

The comment only earned a confused look from the older woman as she tilt her head to the side and asked. "What bento are you talking about, Sakura?"

"The box of onigiri I've been getting everyday, of course." Sakura replied, suspicion growing inside of her.

"I think you've got it wrong, Sakura-chan. The last time I made onigiri was for Fugaku's breakfast last week." Mikoto responded, slightly confused by the odd display of gratitude she was receiving. "I haven't been making onigiri bento boxes ever since Itachi-kun learned how to make them himself."

"Eh?" Sakura exclaimed as she could only gape at the older woman.

"Is something wrong?" Mikoto asked as she touched Sakura's shoulder gently, a sign of concern.

"Ha…ha…ha… I must have gotten it wrong," Sakura forced a smile onto her face, hiding the shock she was feeling. "I think the training and hospital duties are starting to get to my brain. There's nothing to worry about. Absolutely _nothing…_"

—

Sakura stood next to the trunk of a tree, feet tapping on the ground impatiently, unconsciously creating little craters with such action. Her chakra flared erratically as her emotions clouded her control. She was confused, shocked, and mad, to say the least. She crossed her arms, and waited for the appearance of a certain Uchiha.

He materialized out of thin air several feet away from her as usual, and arched an eyebrow at her posture. She seemed to be…angry? Before he could make any comments, Sakura beat him to speaking.

"Itachi-san, where are the bentos really coming from?" She glared straight into the man's eyes, a sign that she was demanding a serious answer from him.

Itachi tensed as he struggled to find the words. His mouth opened, only to close a second later. She didn't find out…did she? No, she couldn't have, unless…

"You have spoken to my mother."

"And you have been lying to me." Sakura gave Itachi a pointed stare. "I ask you again, where are these _really _coming from?"

Under Sakura's scrutinizing stare, Itachi tensed uncomfortably and fidgeted ever so slightly. His eyes darted to the ground, and from where she was standing, he looked like a timid child who was just caught red-handed. Sakura gaped at such un-Uchiha like gesture. She took several strides to close the distance between the two, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. Her eyes soften as she asked her question again, but in a softer and less-accusing voice. Hesitantly, he replied. "I made them."

Sakura's eyes widen at the new piece of information. He had…made them? Her heart was filled with love as an unusual but not unpleasant tingle appeared in her stomach. _The great Uchiha prodigy had been making lunch for me?_ She silently mused.

The Uchiha, however, was not as pleased as the kunoichi was at her new found knowledge. In fact, he was terrified, even though he didn't show it…much. He had not have much experience with associating with others, no scratch that, he had _no_ experience associating with others besides with fighting comrades and family members. With relationships being a completely foreign field to him, he, however much of a prodigy he was, did not know how to approach this subject. What if he had done something wrong to offend her? What if his actions were adverse to her rather than inviting? What if she rejects being associated with him just as his school mates had once done so long ago? What if, like his jealous old genin teammates, she had thought of him as an _'emotion-less, cruel, heartless monster'_? What if she decides to avoid him now that she has found out that he blatantly lied to her?

For the first time in his life, Itachi felt the emotion override as his sharingan flickered on and off at his mental instability. Upon seeing this, Sakura grew extremely concerned. Her hands gently cupped Itachi's cheeks and she looked straight into his eyes. His eyes searched hers for any sign of reassurance and she gave him a comforting smile. "Shh…it's okay…" She whispered as she softly brushed strands of hair from his face.

She had known how little of social experience the Uchiha prodigy had. She had always known. She smiled at the side of him that Itachi was showing her. Even the great ones have an insecure side. Despite his constant effort in trying please the clan by appear as an invincible, effective, and emotionless shinobi, Sakura knew that when everything boils down, he was just a human being, a man with emotions. He deserved to have an emotional outlet, and she was glad that she was the one whom he decided to show his vulnerable side to.

After seeing Itachi's rare display of emotions, Sakura felt an odd surge of emotion through herself. She wants to discover more of him, more of this man who constantly tries to block his feelings out. She wants to protect this naïve, insecure, vulnerable side of him the way white rice wraps protectively around the flavorful center of an onigiri. He would be hers to discover, hers to protect, _her umeboshi._

Sakura was broken from her trance when Itachi suddenly spoke, albeit a little tense, after having calmed down. "If it pleases you, I will continue to bring them."

"Yes, please." Sakura smiled brightly and extracted the package from his hand. She held the bento box at eye-level next to her head, and asked, "Would you like to join me?"

"Hn."

This time, Itachi stayed.

* * *

…_to be continued._

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This chapter is kindly beta-ed by Lady Massacre. Thank you so much! :)

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Author's Notes:

For clarification purposes, Sakura is somewhere in her early twenties, and Itachi is, therefore, mid twenties. I'm thinking from 20-21 for Sakura and 25-26 for Itachi. Thank you maila89 for pointing it out. I've completely forgotten about incorporating the ages into the story. :)

Regarding Itachi's display of mental instability towards the end of the chapter, I was feeling very if-y about the whole scenario. It sort of contradicts all the characteristics that define Itachi, but at the same time, his social ineptitude is what I'm trying to get at. I hope I didn't butcher his character too much and made him really OOC. *shys*

This update is a President's day special- kind of thing. Thank you Mr. President? Heehee. Next update, unfortunately, wouldn't be here until maybe next weekend.

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_Love it? Hate it? Plot suggestions? Just want to talk?_

_Post a review or drop a PM, I'd love to get to know you. :)_


	3. A Gift

_Umeboshi_

_—  
_

_The villagers had always warned her to stay away from the strange child that was Uchiha Itachi, but Haruno Sakura wasn't a normal girl to begin with. ItaSaku non-massacre AU._

_Chapter Three: A Gift_

The bell hanging on the front door chimed softly, and Ino instinctively exclaimed the customary greetings before looking up from her book and plastering a sugarcoated smile onto her face. Upon identifying the person who had just entered her store, her smile grew genuine and wide as she excitedly called out for her new customer. "Forehead!"

"Ino-pig!"

Despite their rude name callings and constant bickering nature (which Sakura had grown quite fond of over the years), Sakura ran full speed towards the girl behind the counter, and proceeded on strangling her in one of her tight and exuberant hugs, not minding how the counter created an awkward barrier between the two at all. After reluctantly releasing the pink-haired girl, Ino immediately jumped to the question that had been bugging her for days. "Where the hell have you been? I haven't heard from you since forever!"

Hand behind her head, Sakura smiled sheepishly at the blond. Ino silently laughed at how the gesture resembles so much of the other exuberant blond, whose habits had definitely rubbed off on the pink-haired kunoichi. Like a machine gun on the loose, Ino fired another question at her friend even before the girl could respond to her previous one. "Did anything interesting happen recently?" The blond batted her eyelashes, anticipating 'valuable information' of some sort.

"Well, just the usual, I guess. Missions, training, hospital stuff, and all." Sakura replied nonchalantly, deliberately missing the point her friend was trying to get at.

"You know I don't mean _those_! I mean anything _interesting_?"

"Oh! Hm…" The pink-haired kunoichi tapped a finger against her chin and looked towards the ceiling, feigning deep thought.

"Ooh! Ooh! It's that look!" Ino squealed excitedly. After having known Sakura for such a long time, Ino knew exactly what every of her friend's little gestures meant. This gesture just so confirms her suspicion of Sakura hiding _something_ from her. "Tell me, now!" Ino demanded.

Sakura refocused her gaze back onto her friend's face. "What look? Tell you what?" She knew that it'd irk Ino to no ends if she decides to withhold any 'sweet juicy gossip' from the girl, but Ino was just too fun to tease for her to let this chance pass by. Sakura's eyes widen as Ino suddenly grabbed her shirtfront and decided to literally shout in her face. "Spill, now!"

Oh how easily Ino could get violent over gossip, and oh how fun it was to get her all riled up! Sakura smirked at her friend, and shot her a challenging glare. "Come beat it outta me if you can!"

Suddenly, the Sakura in Ino's hands disappeared into a puff of smoke as the real Sakura was already making her way out of the door. The blond kunoichi leaped over the counter and sprinted after her friend, all the while growling, "You're on, Forehead!"

The civilians and ninjas all together stayed out of the ways of the two destructive kunoichi. Throughout the years, they had learned (though some with the hard way, being the unfortunate victim caught in the middle of the two's fight) that there was nothing that could possibly stop the two kunoichi once they've decided to start their chase. The villagers had to admit, though, that the fight was quite the sight to see, as long as they were not caught in the middle of it.

After a series of intense taijutsu, ninjutsu, and 'whatever-things-they-could-find-to-throw-at-each-other' jutsu, the two finally collapsed onto the soft green grass of Sakura's usual training site. Sweat trickled down their foreheads as they inhaled the fresh forest air and gave their bodies the rest they deserved. Just as Sakura was enjoying the peace and quietness of the moment, Ino broke the silence with the intention of resuming to their previous topic.

"So, Sakura," the blond said as she managed to pull herself into a sitting position next to her friend. "Spill now before I kick your butt again."

"Che." Sakura snickered as she did the same to sit next to the blond. She grabbed one of the shuriken that had fallen somewhere near her, and tried to prick her finger with the edges. "My kunais and shuriken are getting really dull…"

"Stop going off topic! We'll get you new ones later." Ino urged. "Now talk."

"Fine." Sakura physically deflated as she exhaled, and asked. "What do you want to know?"

Ino's eyes glistened dangerously at Sakura's words, and the pink head gulped at the impending doom that was brought about with the implications in her question.

"I've been hearing things…" Ino trailed off, leaving Sakura hanging for a second before continuing. "…from Aburame. He said something that I want to confirm with you."

Sakura arched an eyebrow. "Shino? What kind of things?"

"Well…" Ino baited, deliberately trying to beat around the bushes. "Usually, he isn't the kind to gossip, but the recent activities of his ANBU captain had caught his attention, and he decided to …_share_…the information with his valuable friend, me."

Sakura winced at her friend's emphasis on the word 'share', and felt a pang of sympathy for the poor bug user. Whatever ways Ino had used, be it persuasion or force, it must have been very unpleasant. Diverting her attention back to Ino, Sakura questioned her friend.

"His ANBU captain?"

"Mhm." Ino nodded almost triumphantly. "It was said that one of his bugs had seen the mysterious captain frequenting this particular section of the forest more than usual, especially during lunch time."

Upon seeing where Ino was getting at, Sakura inwardly cursed. Ino was one of the few who knew of Sakura's training schedule and location, and it just wouldn't do to lie to her, especially about something she that she was certain she knew, so Sakura offered the best rebuttal she could come up with at the moment. "Coincidence much?"

Ino shot her a pointed look, and crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for the answer she expected.

"Okay…" Sakura sighed, giving into Ino's will. "You wouldn't believe this if I tell you…"

"Ooh!" Ino squealed excitedly, practically bouncing up and down on her seat. "This is going to be _so_ _good_!"

Sakura closed her eyes, and began her vague description (at least, as vague as she hoped she could make it) of the previous weeks' encounters with the stoic Uchiha prodigy.

Ino could only gape at her friend as she took in the information that Sakura was feeding her. She opened her mouth, but to only close it again, unable to find words to respond to the story that Sakura was putting out for her. Unfortunately for Sakura, Ino seemed to have found the story as extreme of an antonym for monotonous as it could possibly get.

"Y-you mean…" Ino stuttered, overwhelmed by her new knowledge. "…that there's been a hot piece of meat, I mean, man, not to mention _the_ most eligible young bachelor of Konoha, making you lunch this whole time and you didn't tell me until now?"

"Well, I didn't think it was of any importance! It's just friendly…" Sakura's voice grew smaller and smaller under Ino's blazing glare. "…right?"

Ino clapped her hands together and managed the scariest glint Sakura had ever seen in anyone's eyes in her entire life. "Ooh, this is _so_ good! Wait until Shikamaru hears about this…"

Sakura groaned.

—

Sakura realized that the saying "time flies" was no understatement, especially when she was spending it on an exciting afternoon of gossip with Ino. Hours slipped past the two girls unconsciously, and the sky turned a beautiful shade of yellow orange red as they made their way towards Sakura's humble apartment. Hooking her finger through the ring of keys she kept in her back pouch, Sakura was about to unlock her door when she noticed that hanging from her doorknob was a string of…

"Shuriken?" Ino said, removing the looped ribbon that strung together a batch of new and freshly sharpened shuriken from the knob while arching an eyebrow at the pink-haired kunoichi. She held out the peculiar present to Sakura. "I think these are for you."

Sakura examined the present, trying to find any indication of the origin of the shuriken. Upon close inspection, the answer presented itself clearly to the two girls. On each ends of the ribbon was the omnipresent red and white fan. On the side, Ino scoffed at the weird gift that her friend received. "Aren't they supposed to give flowers instead of…deadly weapons…to…you know… the girl of interest?"

"Hm…I find this rather new compared to the old flowers." Sakura replied, completely missing the last part of Ino's comment. She unknotted the ribbon and proceeded on placing the new batch of shuriken in her pouch, replacing the dull and old ones. "Besides, shurikens are much more practical."

"Whatever you say." Ino shrugged and entered the apartment. Sakura lingered around the doorway. Bring the ribbon to her lips; she tentatively kissed the soft silk material before mouthing 'thank you' towards no where in particular. She knew that the little gesture would be enough for her socially awkward but adorable stalker.

—

After a series of even more gossip, Sakura finally got the peace and quietness she wanted, though, at the expense of poor Shikamaru's. Chuckling as she grabbed a medical book and flopped down on her couch to make herself comfortable, she made a mental note to bring the man more of the sweet mochi he loved next time she visits as his compensation for taking care of her very needy friend. Sakura sighed in relief and delved into her reading material.

The sound of someone banging loudly on her front door woke Sakura up from her sleep. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she wobbly got up from the couch and grabbed the nearest thing to bookmark her page before shutting the book close and leaving it on the coffee table. The series of banging started again and, hoping to stop the deafening sound, Sakura called out, "Coming!"

Sakura pulled open her door, and was bombarded with a flash of orange and yellow that launched itself at her. Out of reflex, she ducked to the side, and the unfortunate blond lost his balance and fell face first onto the cold wooden floor of her apartment.

"Ouch!" Naruto got up from his place on the floor and rubbed his swollen forehead before beaming at the pink-haired kunoichi brightly. "Sakura-chan!"

"Idiot." Sasuke emerged from the other side of the door. "Sakura." He nodded at her for acknowledgment.

"What brings you two here?"

"Mou, Sakura-chan! Don't tell me you forgot!" the exuberant blond exclaimed, waving his hand around. As if on cue, a part of her memory found its place back in her brain as she remembered their plan for the night.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" Sakura blushed as she hurriedly skidded down her hallway towards her bedroom. "Wait for me in the living room. I'll be out in a sec!"

"I can't believe she forgot! It's our team dinner! The one and only team dinner!" The blond complained as the pair of males entered her cozy living room and made themselves comfortable on the couch.

"Shut up." Sasuke knew that Sakura and Ino had a rigorous training session, and understood that she must have fallen asleep. However, he decided to keep that information to himself as he picked up the book on the coffee table and nonchalantly flipped through it. Something navy peeked out from the spine of the book and Sasuke decided that it must have been her bookmark. Opening the book to the marked page, his eyes widen as he recognized the silky material that had been stuck in the middle of the pages.

Sasuke easily recognized the ribbon, for he had one himself. It was a special ribbon that was tied on the first kunai that his father gifted to his sons, and each ribbon was different. Being the second son of the head family, the ribbon he received had two fans on each end. Carefully, he removed the silk ribbon from its place between the pages and brought it in front of his eyes, all the while wondering what in the world his brother's ribbon was doing in his female teammate's house.

It wasn't long before Sakura made her way into the living room and announced that she was ready to go. Sasuke quietly slipped the ribbon backed into its original place in the book before following his teammates out of the apartment.

—

The dinner went by quickly and pleasantly, and the trio parted ways, each returning to their own homes. Strolling down the street that led to his house, Sasuke couldn't help but continue to ponder the question that had been stuck in him ever since the surprise finding at Sakura's house. Knowing his brother, Sasuke was certain that Itachi was someone who found sentimental value of great importance, and there was just no way that his brother would give away such an item without purpose.

Deciding to get to the bottom of his question, Sasuke speedily marched to the entrance of his brother's room as soon as he got home, and knocked on the rice paper door, waiting for his brother to grant him consent of entry. Pulling the rice paper door aside, Sasuke found Itachi sitting at his desk, reading over some ancient looking scrolls. He got straight to his question.

"What is your ribbon doing at Sakura's house?" Sasuke asked almost accusingly.

Itachi looked up from his scroll and gave his brother a blank stare before replying, "I've merely given it to Haruno-san as a gift."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes accusingly at his brother. "I know you, and you wouldn't willingly give away the ribbon, not to mention the same one that you wouldn't even let me touch for fear that I would ruin it when I was younger, to a stranger and act so nonchalantly about it. You're up to something, aren't you?"

"Perhaps." Itachi paused before saying, shocking Sasuke with his answer. Sasuke widened his eyes for a split second before narrowing them again to glare at his brother.

"Don't hurt her." Sasuke warned, his voice laced with threat.

"Hn."

—

_The Next Day_

A familiar chakra signature entered her radar zone as Sakura was training in her usual place during the usual time. She smirked as she easily identified the person, and grabbed several of her new shuriken to throw in the direction he was coming from. The metal weapons made a loud clashing sound as they were met halfway in the air with a kunai that successfully dispelled them. The familiar ANBU captain materialized on the other side of the clearing and gave her one of the small smirks of his own.

"I'm glad to see you that you have found my gift pleasant."

"They're useful alright," Sakura replied, feigning indifference. "especially for throwing at someone like you."

The pink-haired kunoichi stuck her tongue out childishly at the man before making her way to retrieve the weapons that she had thrown earlier. Counting the number of shuriken she had in her hands, she found that she was missing several, and complained, "Where are they?"

Sighing (because he would only allow himself to do so in the open strictly in the presence of Sakura and no one else), he performed a series of hand signs. The shurikens reappeared on his palm and Sakura gaped at what had just happened.

"H-how?" Sakura stared wide-eyed at Itachi as he deposited the shuriken in her hands.

"I've modified the shurikens with the same jutsu I placed on the bento box." He said as he pointed to one corner of the shuriken. Sakura squinted both of her eyes to inspect the object closely, and her eyes widen as she realized that there was a small kanji of 'sakura' on the corner. Not believing what she saw, she fished out the rest of the weapons she had gotten from him, and examined each and every one of them. Upon finding the exact same carvings on the rest of the shuriken, all Sakura could do was gape at the Uchiha in front of her.

"By modify, you mean you've _personalized_ my shuriken?" She exclaimed disbelievingly, hands tracing the delicate ten-stroke kanji on the surface of the star. Whether he carved it by hand or by jutsu, (and Sakura thought it was most likely the former since although they were all carved in his neat writing style, each kanji varied ever-so-slightly from the other), Itachi just didn't seem like the type to be huddling in a corner carving intricate designs onto weapons, especially on _all _of the thirty that he had given to her.

"Hn." Itachi diverted his gaze to the grass next to her feet. "The lost and forgotten shuriken in training grounds are becoming troublesome."

This man certainly had a weird way of showing his friendliness towards others, but Sakura only found his gestures more fascinated day by day. Everything that he had shown her so far had contradicted the icy reputation that the villagers had bestowed upon him, and each and everyday, Sakura only found herself wanting to know more, learn more, discover more of this inscrutable and laconic man whom she knew definitely had a blazing warm heart despite his exterior. Even the dullest kunai can be sharpened into the perfect weapon, and she was sure that the inexperienced Itachi could one day melt away his barrier and become as open and affectionate as others. She wanted to be the one to help him break through his wall, and she wanted to be the one to show him the wonderful world on the outside.

Touched by his way of showing that he cares, Sakura softened her eyes and tentatively reached out to touch his hand. Snapping his gaze back onto the kunoichi, Itachi stiffened at the touch and shot Sakura a confused look. Holding his hand firmly in hers, Sakura brought his knuckles to her lips, and pressed a soft kiss on them the way she did with the ribbon the day before.

"I really like your present," She smiled at the man and let go of his hand, deciding to not torture him further with the physical contact that he was not yet comfortable with. "and thank you for being so considerate."

"Hn."

* * *

…_to be continued._

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_

This chapter is kindly beta-ed by Lady Massacre. Thanks for doing this for me!

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Author's Notes:

1. This chapter is a sort of a "transitioning" chapter when the friendship/relationship thing between Itachi and Sakura starts to make itself known to her friends and eventually spread like rapid fire, and etc. I apologize if you're waiting for some very intimate scenes between the two, but that isn't happening soon. Remember, Itachi has to get _comfortable_ with others first before anything can happen. I want to make it as realistic as it can be (though I'm not sure if I'm succeeding) :P

2. This chapter seemed very fragmented and abrupt, especially the last part with the Itachi-Sakura interaction. I wanted to show her interaction with Ino and Team 7, but at the end I stuck a sort of Itachi-Sakura thing and yea…I didn't really know how to make it more coherent. I apologize if you didn't like it as much. (Chapter slightly revised on 2/22/09 in response to chapter review)

3. The conditioning and practices for the sport I play are getting me really tired everyday (6 days of constant physical exhaustion & 1 day of very sore body every week…), but hooray! I managed to write this chapter and mustard up a somewhat "fast" update. Heehee. Next chapter would most likely be the same as this chapter, meaning that it wouldn't be here until probably next weekend. Sit tight! :)

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_Love it? Hate it? Plot suggestions? Just want to talk?_

_Post a review or drop a PM, I'd love to get to know you. :)_


	4. Idiotic Genii

_I'm so happy to see all the wonderful reviews! Thank you guys so much for the great feedback._

_Also, I made some minor changes to the ending of last chapter, but this site was down for two days, so I didn't get to replace the chapter as soon as I finished. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter. :) (2/22/09)_

_—  
_

_Because Sasuke knew that no matter how smart they are, when it comes to love, they were both idiots._

_—  
_

_Chapter Four: Idiotic Genii_

One hobby that Sakura developed over the years was her fondness for romance novels. She'd read almost all of what's available, be it sappy happily-ever-after stories or heart wrenching angst tragedies. Often times when she received a break between missions and hospital duties, she would huddle up on her couch and enjoy a quick read. The novels were her temporary escape from her stressful present, and they never fail to melt her into a puddle of emotional goo with their sappiness and heartwarming plot and make her wish that reality was just as simple and predictable.

However, what Sakura also learned over the years was that reality hardly ever operates on clichés. Sasuke never got down on one knee and ask her thirteen year-old self out, and her first date with Neji did not end with a passionate goodnight kiss on her porch as he walked her home. Reality continued to puncture her fantasy balloon, and that was why, at the age of twenty, coupled with much of the experience that reality harshly threw at her, Sakura was most certain that having a ragged and tattered looking shinobi showing up in her room, no matter how attractive he still looked despite his worn appearance, would have absolutely _no_ romantic indication what-so-ever at all. After all, if it did, well…that would be abnormal and unlikely.

But Sakura forgot that with Uchiha Itachi, hardly anything goes 'normal'.

He stood on her windowsill, knocking on the glass plane of her window at the ungodly hour of three in the morning, waking her up from her warm and much needed sleep. She turned her back to him and curled up further into her comforters, wishing that he'd get the point and leave her to rest. The offending knocking sound persisted (if not grew louder), and Sakura growled, hesitantly throwing aside her warm cover and getting up from her bed. Walking towards her window, Sakura shot him an annoyed glare before sticking her tongue out childishly at him and pulled her dark curtain over the window, decidedly blocking him out.

She crawled back into bed and snuggled against her pillow at the silence she managed to get. The older Uchiha, however, did not seem to understand her gesture and, after couple seconds of stillness, proceeded to knock on her window again. Sakura sighed as she lied very awake in her bed, and wondered what in the world could Itachi want this early in the morning. Feeling defeated, she got up from her bed and pulled her curtain back.

He still had his ANBU uniform on, Sakura noted, and his mask hung loosely around his neck. A few strands of dark hair fell from the elastic band and framed his face, but nevertheless, his hair still looked as soft and silky as always. There were couple of faint scratches along his arm, and Sakura made a mental note to see to them as soon as she figure out what the man wanted.

Itachi ceased his knocking as he watched Sakura slowly unlock her window and sliding the glass planes aside. Sakura glared at him and was about to give him a piece of her very irritated mind when he beat her to the speaking.

"Will you object to the idea of spending dinner in my company?" His inquiry was so soft that she could have easily missed it if it weren't for the acute hearing Kakashi had drilled into her. She gaped at the older male. He woke her up at three in the morning just to…ask her out to dinner?

All of a sudden the Uchiha male lost his balance and crashed full force down from the windowsill onto the young girl. Sakura's arms instinctively shot out to catch the falling man, and the two crumbled onto the floor.

Sakura shrieked.

—

Several things bombarded Sakura's head in the same instant. First, there was a man, not to mention a well-proportioned and attractive man, lying on top of her (inner Sakura twirled around triumphantly at this thought). Second, there seemed to be some warm thick liquid trickling down the side of her arm and seeping through the material of her pajamas. Was that…blood?

She didn't know how she didn't smell it earlier. Maybe it was just that her senses were dulled by her sleepiness, or maybe she was too shocked by the Uchiha's question to notice it, but now that she had woken up, she could definitely identify the coppery smell that was lingering in the air. Her medic mode kicked in as she flipped their positions around and ripped his ANBU uniform shirt open (while ignoring inner Sakura's fantasy of doing such actions under other circumstances). She quickly accessed his injury; on his abdomen was a deep gash, but thankfully it wasn't deep enough to damage his internal organs. Along his arms were also sword wounds that Sakura had mistaken as insignificant scratches before. Whatever had caused these injuries was definitely one big weapon, a big sword, maybe. Drawing chakra to her hand, she pressed her palm on the abdomen to stop the blood from flowing any longer. Meticulously, she started to knit together the muscles.

Several strenuous hours passed as she worked continuously on the injured man. Her palm was tainted red, her fingertips felt raw, and her chakra was running low, but finally, she had managed to take care of all his major injuries. There was nothing more to do than to let his body recuperate on its own. Using her inhuman strength, she propped Itachi's upper body up to bandage his torso effortlessly, and picked him up from the ground to set him on her bed. Spots of red tainted her bed sheets, but that was the least of her concern. She gently tucked him in, and exited the room, softly clicking close the door.

—

Several hours later when Sakura returned to her room to check on her patient, she found him sitting up leaning against her headboard, reading what seemed to be a book that he had found. She settled the tray of warm porridge and fruits on the low table next to her bed, and blushed when she realized that what the Uchiha man was reading was none other than one of her romance novels.

"I never thought you were the type to like explicit descriptions of certain activities in your reading material." He commented before closing the book and arching an eyebrow at the blushing female. She snatched the book away from him and threw it in one of the drawers, mentally cursing that it just so happened that she stopped and bookmarked the page of a very citricy chapter the night before. Itachi chuckled lightly at her flushed appearance, earning an irritated glare from the female.

"Well, I never thought you were the type to show up unannounced on a girl's windowsill at _three in the morning_ tattered and dirty to waking her up from her very much needed sleep _just_ to ask her to join you for dinner either." Sakura retorted, puffing her cheeks. "Mikoto must be crying rivers now that it seemed all her manner lessons had gone down the drain."

Fully expecting Itachi to shoot something back her way, Sakura was surprised when he did no such thing. He lowered his gaze to look at his hands, seemingly contemplating something. Truth to be told, he did not know why he did such thing at all. He was on a week long mission to investigate the rumors that people saw these red and black cloaked nins around the border. Since it had come to Konoha's attention that Akatsuki seemed to be active again, Tsunade didn't want to take any chances, and sent his ANBU squad on a scouting mission. However, even though he was physically away from Konoha, he could not stop thinking about Sakura. He didn't understand what he was feeling, and why it was that he wanted nothing more than to return to their village to see her again. All of that had eventually led to his visit of her apartment earlier this morning as soon as he returned from his mission. He should have been more logical and went to the hospital first, but he didn't.

He flickered his gaze back to hers and his confused onyx eyes searched in hers for any sign of anger towards him for his actions. To her, he looked like a lost puppy, eyes wide and brows drawn together. Her eyes soften, and she smiled gently at him, patting her hand lightly on his. Seeming to understand him, she said gently, "Take better care of yourself. I was worried when you lost consciousness because of blood loss."

Being on the receiving end of Sakura's gentleness, he shyly looked away from her, tints of pink brushing his cheeks. "The question?" he asked softly.

For a second, Sakura was uncertain of what he was asking, until it dawned to her that he was referring to the one he had asked before passing out. A smile bloomed on her face as she cheerily replied. "Of course I would love to have dinner with you." Itachi was shocked by her audacity, even though he didn't show it. "You know what, let's just have it here in my house tonight. I have a lunch scheduled with Sasuke, but you can stay here and rest while I pick up the supplies, yea?"

Sakura seemed to indulge in her idea so much that she completely dismissed the Uchiha as she went about to gathering her wallet and keys and left the house, but not before gently patting Itachi on the head and warning him not to move around too much.

Itachi sat alone in the middle of her room, not knowing what to do. His gaze fell onto the tray of food that Sakura had brought in earlier, and he took a spoonful of the porridge before stuffing it in his mouth.

The porridge tasted like burnt charcoal.

—

"He's into you." Sasuke blurted out in the midst of their lunch.

"Who?"

"Itachi."

"What about him?" Sakura asked nonchalantly, twirling the udon in her soup. Sasuke sighed. Even though Sakura was considered one of the most intelligent kunoichi among their generation, when it came to relationships, she was a complete idiot.

"Uchiha Itachi, my brother and the heir of Uchiha clan, is into you, Haruno Sakura."

Chopsticks clinked against the side of the bowl as they were dropped from Sakura's sudden loose grasp while she looked into Sasuke's eyes, searching for any sign of jest. Drawing her brows together, she narrowed her eyes to glare at the young Uchiha, and whispered harshly, "That's not funny, Sasuke."

Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes. "You think I'd joke about this?"

Sakura's eyes widened and she gasped.

_If it pleases you, I will continue to bring them._

_I'm glad to see you that you have found my gift pleasant._

_Will you object to the idea of spending dinner in my company?_

All of the subtle hints that Sakura missed came crashing as she realized that she had been taking those comments as nothing below their surfaces. Sakura didn't know why she had been so oblivious. Throughout their time together, Itachi had been slowly but surely dropping hints of his care for her. Yes they had been small, and yes they had been almost undetectable, but for one such as Itachi, the infamous ANBU captain that was known for being emotionally detached, to show such uncharacteristic tenderness towards her, and for him to let his emotional guard down around her (as she had seen those confused orb so many times)…

"Oh Kami." She whispered, dumbstruck.

"Yes, dense one. I don't know what you did, but my brother is certainly very interested in you."

"But I didn't do anything!" she exclaimed. "At least…I hope…"

Sasuke shrugged and returned to his bowl of ramen. Sakura sat dumbly, mind swirling with numerous questions.

It seemed that her relationship with Uchiha Itachi had just gotten one level more complicated.

—

Using the hand that was not carrying groceries, Sakura hesitantly pushed open her door, not knowing how to face Itachi now with her new found knowledge. Assuming that he was asleep (which was what he _should _be doing), she quietly slipped off her sandals, and padded to the kitchen to settle down the groceries. Upon arriving in the kitchen, she came across a note that was placed on her island countertop. The tale-tell handwriting of the captain printed neatly on the small post-it informed her that he had suddenly been called for family business, and that unfortunately, they had to postpone their engagement to another day.

Sakura sighed and slumped into one of her stools beside the counter while mulling over her predicament. Well, it wasn't a predicament per se, as being the target of Itachi's affection was not unpleasant. However, she was at the height of her career—being right below the Hokage herself and an accomplished an acknowledged shinobi— she had not given much thought to romantic relationships. Besides, it had been so long _(too long, inner Sakura supplied)_ since she had been showered with men's affection (as none of her suitors dared to approach her, courtesy to her heart brothers and their former instructor), and it had been a while since she felt anything towards any of the males.

It was not to say that she doesn't feel slight attraction towards the elder Uchiha brother. After all, she was a healthy woman and he was a good-looking man. He was, also, a very intriguing man—one who could match up to her thinking easily, and one who could definitely pose a challenge in a spar. He would be, all in all, as Ino would call it, a very good catch. But she was not someone to desperately jump at any handsome man on the streets. They were both too inexperienced in the field of romance, Itachi especially, and she had her share of doubt of the genuineness of their feelings. Maybe it was just a phase for him; maybe it was just a phase for her; she didn't know.

Sakura groaned and rested her head against the cold surface of the counter. Maybe a shower will make things better.

Sakura cradled another romance novel in her arms as she lounged on her couch lazily flipping through its pages. Several days had passed without any sign of the Uchiha, but she didn't pay much mind to it. After much contemplation on the first day, Sakura had decided to let things flow as it may. After all, she had no control over Itachi's feelings (which for certain she knew he had), and if it did happen that he was interested in her…well, they could work from there later.

She was enjoying yet another sappy cliché love confession scenes when a puff of smoke suddenly appeared in the middle of her living room on her coffee table. Immediately, she grabbed the kunai she kept in between the cushions of the couch and jumped into defense position. The smoke cleared and on her coffee table appeared a black feline slowly licking its paws. Upon meeting her eyes with its own, the cat jumped from the table to the ground gracefully and walk towards her. Sakura crouched down to try to appear as friendly as she could be and approached the cat cautiously. On its back, Sakura noticed as it got closer, was a note that was tied to its torso with a ribbon. Removing the note from its back, Sakura read the content.

_Get ready. Dinner. 6pm._

Sakura stared incredulously at the note. The neat handwriting, coupled with the authoritative tone, gave away the writer of the note immediately. Did he just _order_ her to prepare to go to dinner with him?

Her eyes darted to the clock on her wall. It was four-thirty, giving her roughly one hour and thirty minutes to prepare. She got onto her feet and darted into her bedroom to get ready.

—

Itachi pressed the little black button on her door, feeling a bit awkward, having been accustomed to using teleportation jutsu rather than the door for most of his visits to other's houses. Several minutes passed and Sakura still wasn't there. He rang the doorbell again.

He started to become worried when even after the second doorbell no one came to answer the door. Was she in danger? Did someone attack her?

Suddenly, he heard a scream from inside of the house. Without a second thought, he performed the necessary hand signs and teleported himself to where he detected her chakra. Upon landing onto solid ground, he blurted, out of concern and distress, "Sakura, What— "

None of his shinobi experience prepared him for the sight in front of him. Sakura was down on knees waving a cat teaser in front of her, giggling and letting out mirthful yelps occasionally as his summon jumped into the air, attempting to claw the feather. Itachi chuckled at the sight, and upon hearing its master's voice, the cat immediately ceased its attempts.

"Ryo." Itachi acknowledge and the cat nodded. It walked towards Sakura and nudged its cheek against her palm affectionately before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Sakura got onto her feet and smooth out her white halter sundress before turned her gaze to Itachi. "Why did you have to send him away?" She crossed her arms in front of her chest and pouted.

"I believe I have secured this part of your time as mine, Haruno-san." He languidly closed the distance between them and deposited a stem of sunflower into her arms. "They said it's customary to bring flowers…" He trailed off uncertainly.

"Don't be so formal. You weren't so formal when you crashed into the kitchen a while ago." Sakura twirled the fully bloomed sunflower in her fingers before beaming brightly at Itachi. "And this is beautiful. Thank you!"

She set the flower down on her dining table before returning her attention back to the Uchiha. "Well, Shall we?" she inquired as she tugged lightly at Itachi's hand.

"Hn."

—

The two made their ways to a nice and cozy café near the edge of the city. As the waitress was leading them towards their table, Sakura couldn't help but admire the simple but sophisticated interior design and hoped that her house could be decorated the same way. She sighed as she remembered that her meager paycheck didn't allow the luxury of remodeling her home. They settled down into a booth next to the windows as the waiter took their order and brought their drinks.

She sipped her drink and twirled the straw in her fingers as she looked at Itachi, who sat stoically and seemed to not know what to do. Deciding that it was either now or never to ask the question that had been in the back of her mind since her lunch with Sasuke, she broke their silence and spoke.

"Itachi." She called to catch the attention of her dinner company. His eyes flashed as he noticed the drop of her usual suffix. "It has come to my attention that there is a possibility that you may wish to pursue such that is more than what is understood to be the nature of a friendship." She blurted out in a jumble.

Itachi paused to take in her words before admitting. "Such intention has crossed my mind, yes." He whispered and looked into her eyes.

"Why me?"

Why, exactly had she caught his interest? Itachi pondered over the question. The first time she caught his eyes was when she charmed his mother and melted the hostile shield around Fugaku. He didn't become really interested in her until his mother's comment prompted some curiosity in him roughly one month ago. As he got to know her, he was exposed to yet so many aspects of life he didn't understand. She was the gentleness that he was hardly ever granted in his unforgiving shinobi life. She was the color amongst his monotonous achievements. She was the warmth contrasting with the cold and empty praises from his strict clan. She was a novelty. She was a rarity. Up until now, everything he had done had been for the good of the clan. The clan dominated his life, his being. But for once, he wants to be selfish; to learn her; to discover every fiber that made up her being; to keep her all for himself—her gentleness, her warmth, her shimmering eyes and bright smiles.

"You're a rarity." He stared intently into her emerald eyes. "And I want to be selfish."

Taken aback by his confession (and slightly confused), Sakura gaped at him. "We still don't really know each other yet."

"I'll be willing to learn." He answered with so much certainty that made Sakura's mouth parted into a wide smile.

"It's not going to be easy."

"I like challenges."

"You know, Itachi-san, your reputation is completely flawed." Sakura chuckled. The villagers had always told her that a good and innocent girl like her should stay away from the heartless and peculiar Itachi. However, the Itachi she, along with the entire village, thought they knew was most certainly not the individual sitting if front of her. ( _He is definitely not some cold emotionless killing machine_, inner Sakura added.) "You never cease to amuse me."

Itachi smirked—inner Sakura melted into a puddle of goo at this—and replied, "Neither do you, Sakura-san."

—

Not many conversations followed throughout dinner except for small, trivial talks. Majority of the dinner passed in relatively comfortable silence as they nibbled their way through their meals. As a perfect gentleman, Itachi paid for her dinner (much to her displeasure) and walked her home.

Sakura dug into her purse for her keys, and unlocked the door before turning around to face Itachi who stood almost uneasily on her porch.

"Well, thank you for the dinner." Sakura said shyly. "Goodnight."

"Hn." He nodded. As he looked at Sakura, Itachi saw that she seemed to be anticipating something. The two stood there unmoving while silence loomed over their heads. A couple seconds ticked by, and Itachi decided to break the silence.

"I am not familiar with post-dinner customs for…_dates_." He struggled a bit to pronounce the word, and turned his head aside, attempting to hide the soft glow of heat that was crawling its way onto his face. Sakura's eyes soften at his admittance of his lack of knowledge, and smiled. She descended down the stairs in front of her door and surprised Itachi by tentatively wrapping her arms around his torso. Itachi's eyes widened as he immediately grew rigid at the contact.

"This would be just fine." She placed her cheek on his chest as she listened to his increased heartbeat. Slowly (and a bit awkwardly), Itachi wrapped his own arms around her and pulled her into a tighter embrace. Her height just barely reached his shoulders, but Itachi couldn't help but admit that her head tucked comfortably under his chin.

Neither of them seemed to want to let go as they enjoyed their minutes of peace in each others arms. They both know, though, that inevitably they would have to part ways. Hesitantly, Itachi released her and pulled away. He looked into her emerald eyes and tucked a strand of hair behind her ears before telling her, "rest."

She nodded and retreated back into her house. Flashing him one last smile, she closed the door as he teleported away.

Sakura couldn't keep her smile from widening as she changed out of her dress into more comfortable clothes. In retrospect, her date was probably as close to the cliché romance novels as her life could get. Walking into her kitchen, Sakura picked up the sunflower that she had received earlier and buried her face into it, smiling and wondering if Itachi knew the meaning of the flower.

* * *

_Sunflowers— warmth and adoration

* * *

_

This chapter was kindly beta-ed by Lady Massacre.

* * *

Author's Notes:

1. Ahh! I'm so late! Sorry for not updating sooner. March is a nervous and exciting month for me. Lots of scholarships are due and college results are coming out! Really scared of where I will end up next year. :P

2. Yay for the start of their relationship! Well, they're not like…a couple yet. They're just both willingly participating in… hmm… the exploration of a field that's completely foreign to them.

3. Just to clarify, Umeboshi!Itachi is one that's really confident in everything and puts on a invincible front—except when it comes to relationships. I think you can see that sometimes he still makes fun of Sakura and inserts some arrogant comments here and there, but inside, he feels really insecure and therefore constantly seeks the companionship of Sakura, who, instead of rejecting him like the others and puts more pressure onto his shoulders, accepts him with gentleness. Umeboshi!Sakura is more of a laid back, going-with-the-flow-of-life- kind of girl. She still gets riled up easily when you wrong her or the ones she care about, but she isn't the beat-the-crap-out-of-you-now-and-ask-question-later person. I think we can give her credit for her logical and calm mind and stop butchering her by making her very prone to violence. As empirical Dharma pointed out in a review, I do think that gentleness will appeal to Itachi more than violence and blood will. After all, as the manga described, he is a peace-loving individual who sacrificed his life for his village. I don't know if you can see that through my writing. I'm not that good at character development yet…and still trying to tweak it out. What do you think?

4. The chapters are unconsciously getting longer and longer! Well, I sort of stop when I feel like there's a good stopping place or when a series of connected events come to an end rather than according to how many words in a chapter and what not. I hope you won't mind the varying lengths in the future. :P

5. As for the next chapter, I'll try to get it out before Monday of next week. I'll try really hard! :)

* * *

_Love it? Hate it? Plot suggestions? Just want to talk?_

_Post a review or drop a PM, I'd love to get to know you. :)_


	5. Catalyst

_Umeboshi_

_—  
_

_Sakura has always known that Uchiha Itachi is a busy man with busy duties, but what she doesn't expect is for the said man to pull her into his busy life. Not that she's complaining…_

_Chapter Five: Catalyst_

The soft hues of twilight spread over the western sky, marking the conclusion of another day with serene magenta stripes. The evening wind picked up and carried the icy fresh scent of trees into Sakura's sensitive nostrils. Adrenaline rushing through every cell of her body, Sakura greedily inhaled the clean air around her to calm her racing heart, but at the same time, kept a vigilant eye on her surroundings. It was her first out-of-village, active mission in a while, a _long _while, and even though her role was predominantly to act as the medic for the ANBU group, she did not want to mess up; It had to be perfect. She checked her hidden chakra once more, and directed her gaze at the crouching captain hiding several trees away as she waited for his signal.

The fire crackled, illuminating the clearing below them as sunlight began to fade and replaced by the white glow of the slowly rising moon. Around it sat two seemingly oblivious individuals who could have easily passed as civilians camping if not for the donning of black cloaks with tell-tale red clouds, sipping water from their canteens, completely unperturbed. Sakura recognized the blue skinned robust figure of the shark look alike, but his partner of orange swirl mask escaped her knowledge. According to the information that the Kazekage had generously delivered, the man was a new recruitment of the Akatsuki, but not one to be underestimated. No more information was provided of this individual, and the two lone facts struck anxiousness into Sakura. Whereas she already had an idea of the Kisame's fighting style, she had no idea of what to expect from this unnamed, orange-masked person.

Time ticked by as the ANBU unit waited for the right time to strike. The navy blanket of glimmering stars fully set in, adorned by the sharp crescent shape of the lowly hung moon. Kisame snored lightly, his prone figure on the ground displayed a tad of vulnerability. The partner had settled comfortably against a tree across from Kisame, his head tilted back slightly, but his mask still in place even as he slipped into a seemingly pensive state. Their calmness and oblivion appeared suspiciously surreal, but the ANBU captain decided that the pretend unawareness was the best that the quartet would ever get from its enemies.

With the smallest flick of his hand, Itachi signaled for the planned ambush. His bloody crimson eyes spun swiftly as he carefully weaved an intricate illusion in the clearing. The three males of her unit simultaneously jumped into the clearing as Sakura stayed behind. It was part of _the plan_. Sakura inwardly scoffed as she rolled her eyes at the protective order that restricted her involvement in anything other than the duties of a medic that her captain had given her. The two Akatsuki males seemed completely unaware of the approaching shinobis. Taking the chance, Shisui, who acted as Shino's substitute for the mission, and Yamato immediately went for Kisame's snoring figure as Itachi swiftly slit the throat of the guy with the orange mask. Even though crimson blood continued to ooze out of the corpse's neck, and there was no mistake of the same life liquid that dripped down from the tip of his shining kunai, Itachi narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the difficulty of the mission. It was conspicuously too easy.

As if reading his thought, the two corpses disappeared into puffs of smoke. At the edge of the clearing appeared the two shadowy figures that are barely visible through the thin veil of smoky white. The three men spun around and got into defense position. As the smoke cleared, the two figures were identified as their target. No words were exchanged before the fight broke out.

Sakura observed the fight from her spot in the tree, adrenaline and excitement coursing through every fiber in her body, craving the action. She watched with amazement Itachi's graceful and fluid moves as he approached the orange-masked Akatsuki. Her attention drifted to the other pair to observe Shisui attack Kisame using his infamous speed as Yamato stood behind to cover him. However, her keen eye picked up Shisui's decreasing speed and tired form. Her eyes drifted to Kisame, noticing that he had unwrapped the bindings to his precious sword and had held it over his head, ready to strike. Realization dawned to her that Kisame had been absorbing Shisui's chakra to incapacitate him, and immediately, she dislodged herself from her position in the tree and sprung forward to where Shisui was, hoping to push him out of the way of what would be a fatal blow.

But she was too late.

Kisame's blade connected with flesh and Shisui let out a terrifying wail before he submitted to darkness. Yamato took offense after the fall of Shisui, and engaged in a battle with Kisame. Taking the chance of distracted enemies, Sakura immediately knelt down next to Shisui and started working on his wound. Her brows knit together tightly as she calculated the minimal amount of chakra it would take to stop the hemorrhage. Because they were fighting such ominous enemies, she could not afford to exhaust all her chakra supply on one shinobi. Her left hand worked professionally to check his pulse and swiftly procure medical supplies from her pouch. Faint green glow surrounded her right hand as she pressed it on the wound that ran across Shisui's chest, her concentration never faltering.

Hearing his cousin's petrifying scream, Itachi checked on Sakura with the slightest shift of his gaze, before returning to his opponent. Up until now, the two had only fire one genjutsu after another at each other, never really engaging in fighting of other elements. His opponent was quite expert with illusions, to Itachi's surprise, and was able to elude most of the sharingan illusions without breaking a sweat. The fact irked him, that there existed a mysterious force outside of his knowledge that could break the genjutsu of the sharingan as easily as if it too possessed the very same eyes. Or, could it be that there was an extended part to their clan that he was unaware of? He thought as he creased his dark brows, waves of pain shooting from the back of his retina to his brain, having used his crimson blood limit once too many for his comfort.

The pair's fight almost seemed static to the outer eyes, it was a test of mental strength, each one skirting around the edges of the other's carefully woven blanket of illusion.

Having successfully stopped the bleeding and chakra-induced the cells from the wound to start regenerating, Sakura carefully propped Shisui's limp figure up and bandaged his torso with practiced ease. After tying the final knot on the bandages, Sakura looked up from her patient to survey the battle statistics of the remaining members of her unit, but she was faced with quite possibly the most horrifying, nerve-wrecking moment of her life-

On one side of the clearing, Yamato erected a wooden wall as a defense to Kisame's jutsu just right before the waters crashed down like ferocious waves of the ocean, and on the other side, Itachi was busy engaging in a battle of illusions with the orange masked shinobi. However, neither ninja had noticed that the sly blue skinned shinobi had managed to create a shadow duplicate of himself, and the aforementioned bunshin was currently dashing across the clearing, sword propped up with both hands, ready to strike the unaware back of one dark haired captain.

Panicking, Sakura went with her instinct, picked up Shisui's fallen swords at her side, and sprinted her way to the middle of the clearing, intercepting Kisame's attack. The impact of his large sword against her thin metals threw her back several feet, forcing one of her hands to let go of the blade it held, but Sakura managed to stay upright. She held the hiltof her single sword tightly with her hands, and started charging at Kisame, swinging it at the shark ninja with reckless abandon. The blue skinned shinobi chuckled at her pitiful attempt, stabbed the ground with his body length sword, and ridiculed, "I won't need it to defeat you, Pinky."

Angered by his words, Sakura roared a harsh battle cry as she launched herself at Kisame. Being completely untrained, her strokes were of no pattern, and it allowed her to land a few blunt cuts on a surprised Kisame who was unable to dodge them. Kisame snarled at the crimson that was seeping through his sleeve, and growled, "Enough of the play! Time for some real sword fighting!"

He picked up the lone sword that Sakura had dropped. Despite his bulkiness, Kisame agilely flew across the clearing with the thin blade, and attacked Sakura with a sword dance of great elegance. Red blotches and lines started to run along Sakura's uniform, and beads of sweat ran down the side of her head as she futilely attempted to block Kisame's strikes. She mentally questioned her sanity, inwardly asking why in the world she challenged one of the Seven Swordsmen to a battle, of _swords_, on top of that. Heck, she didn't even _know_ how to practice a sword! Despite her obvious disadvantage, however, Sakura was determined to keep Kisame (clone or not, Sakura wasn't sure anymore) engaged for as long as possible, for he would immediately attack Itachi if he had the chance. She cursed the sword for impeding her close range attacks. If only she could land a punch on that damned shark man with her inhuman strength…

In the midst of her inward musing, her attention on Kisame faded, and her agility was also affected by her distracted mind. She was harshly snapped back to reality by her alarming senses when Kisame appeared lightning fast in front of her, ready to run the sword down her from above her head. Sakura held her sword above her to block the slash, but she didn't anticipate for Kisame to withdraw his arm mid-strike and stab her abdomen instead. Sharp pain shot through her nervous system as the sword entered near the left of her bellybutton and exited from her back. She courageously drew the blade out, biting her lips to try to hold back the pain, but it was too much to handle. She pressed a hand glowing with green chakra to her wound, but the colors of the forest were already beginning to merge as her vision blurred, and she struggled to stand. She was losing consciousness, and she knew it, but she was fighting against the darkness. _No, _she thought. _Must…keep...fighting...Kisame. Itachi…_

Itachi was in the middle of forming yet another intricate illusion when he heard another bloodcurdling scream, and upon recognizing it, his blood ran cold. _Sakura_, he thought as he pulled out his ANBU issued katana, deciding to end the fight as soon as possible. Before he could advance to make his move, however, the orange masked shinobi flickered and disappeared from in front of him. Itachi spun around one-eighty degrees and saw his opponent reappear beside the blue skinned ninja, and within seconds, the two were gone.

The raven haired captain immediately ran to where Sakura laid on the ground, his face scrunched seeing the fresh pool of crimson blood that nearly engulfed the entire length of her body. From the fallen swords, he deuced that Sakura had fought with Kisame using swords in spite of her obviously not knowing how to use one. Furthermore, the fact that her position in the clearing so far away from Yamato and so close to him, the implication was strong. She fought to prevent Kisame from getting to him.

A pang of guilt ran through his heart as Itachi blamed himself for Sakura's injuries. He shouldn't have made her come to this particular mission that was obviously _too_ dangerous. Thoughts clouded his mind, but one line stood clear- it was entirely his fault.

Itachi placed his index and middle finger on top of Sakura's wrist, and discovered her dying pulse. Then, he leaned his ear against her mouth, brows knit together as irregular and rapid spurts of warmth splashed against his cheek whenever she exhaled shakily. His blood raced as he picked her up bridal style. He had to get to the hospital _fast_. Signaling for Yamato to aid Shisui, the captain shot into the dense forest with chakra pumped calves, and took off with incredible speed. The remaining two members of the unit followed suit, and the clearing was left with silence, for a while.

Hidden behind the dense trees, two figures stood on one tall branch, watching the abandoned clearing and the glowing white moon that was reflected beautifully in the puddle of dark crimson.

"The lad?" the taller of the two shadows asked, smiling widely, his razor-sharp white teeth peeking from behind his azure lips as the lower part of his face caught part of the cascaded light of the white crescent moon.

The shorter of the two stared ahead. None of his body was visible as he was completely concealed in the shadows. Behind his mask, his lips were parted in a wide smile similar to his partner's. He took his sweet time, but finally he replied huskily, his eye bleeding to familiar crimson. "Satisfying."

—

Light of the morning sun filtered through the thin curtains and spilled on a sleeping Sakura's face. She squinted, drawing her brows together as she groaned at the unwelcome brightness. Her head felt jammed, like a cup brimming with the elements of a gigantic migraine, and her limbs were as heavy as lead when she tried to move them. With a soft, plaintive murmur, she reluctantly opened her eyes. It took a while for her retinas to adjust to the shift of lighting, and soon after, she was faced with the familiar white walls within which she spent most of her time.

The sound of rustling fabric drew Sakura's attention, and she turned her head to the side, only to find her blonde mentor scratching words onto a wooden clipboard. Tsunade's caramel gaze shifted from the heart monitor to the sac of sodium chloride that was hung above it, making sure the liquid wasn't flowing too fast or too slow. Sakura shot Tsunade a quizzical look and opened her mouth to try to speak, but only to have her beloved shishou tell her to be quiet by placing an index finger in front of her lips. She crooked her head, confused. Tsunade pointed to the window, and upon turning around, Sakura's eyes widened.

Sitting on a chair with his arms crossed casually in front was Itachi, who was leaning slightly against the windowsill, eyes closed, asleep. His hair was messily tied in a ponytail, seeming as if it hadn't been carefully combed for days, and even as he slept, his brows were knit together tightly, dark cruel shadows appearing under his eyes, contrasting greatly with his pale skin. Sakura directed a worrisome look at her shishou, asking for an explanation, and Tsunade bent down to whisper softly next to her ear, "He's never left the spot the entire four days that you were unconscious." Sakura's eyes widened, obviously shocked by the information. Tsunade nodded before continuing, "Everything looks good, your injury is healing well, so you should be able to check out by tonight, after a couple of tests. You are both off active duty for three days, starting tomorrow, tell that to your hard headed captain."

"There are more missions for me?" Sakura asked, shocked, making the question coming out more like a soft gasp.

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah, seeing how Uchiha Itachi had filled out an official request for a certain someone to become the permanent medic of a certain ANBU squad right before the mission." She said, matter-of-factly, "Trust me, that request looked more like a ten page analysis of '_reasons-why-I-need-Sakura-on-my-squad-and-nobody-else'_ than anything; It went from the benefits of your medical knowledge to how your exotic hair color is advantageous while hiding in a cherry blossom tree during spring."

Sakura gaped at her mentor, her jaws almost falling to the ground. "Seriously?"

Tsunade chuckled, "Maybe not the last part, but you get the idea. It seems like all the hospital work is going to be handed over to Shizune from now on, ne?" She winked at Sakura, making her way to the door. "Oh, I want a report of the mission by morning the day after tomorrow, tell that to the captain too. Get some rest." With that, she exited the room.

Sakura stared incredulously at her hands, her mind still not quite able to wrap around the idea that she would be working with an ANBU group permanently as of now.

_Booyah! _Inner Sakura cheered._ Just think of what we can do with that extra money that comes with those high ranked missions!_

The cherry-haired girl laughed at her inner self, and softly exclaimed, "I really thought I blew it!"

"Blew what?" The smooth baritone made its way to her ears, and she joyously turned her head to flash a bright smile at the raven-haired male who had awaken and dragged his chair to her immediate bedside.

"You know, the mission thing." She scratched the back of her head sheepishly as she replied. "I didn't know you requested me to be your permanent medic! Ooh, just thinking about all the action is making me excited!"

Upon registering her words, Itachi immediately declared. "You are most certainly not accompanying any squad on any mission anymore. It is too dangerous." Sakura stopped dead in the midst of her cheering, her beaming face fell dramatically, but Itachi continued, "I will personally withdraw my request from Hokage-sama as soon as possible."

"No!" Sakura protested, shooting at Itachi a pair of wide, pleading eyes. "I'm just a little bit rusty, that's all! After all, it's been so long since I've gone on a mission! Please let me stay!"

"That is unacceptable." He replied sternly, directing at her the sharp eyes that left no room for argument.

"Please, please, please? Pretty, pretty, please?" She clasped her hands in front of her and pouted her lips just the slightest bit. Itachi turned his head sideways, directing his gaze to the grey granite ground, looking away to ignore the insistent face that was doing a good job wavering his will.

A few strands of his dark hair fell from his messy ponytail and covered his face, effectively hiding his expression. Silence lingered in the air, and seeing that Itachi wasn't going to start speaking, Sakura whispered, "Itachi…"

He turned his head around, his brows knit, eyes troubled, concern written visibly on his face. Sakura's eyes soften, and she ran her fingertip down the side his face, tracing the sharp contour of his jaw before affectionately cupping his face with her right hand. "I'll be fine." Sakura reassured softly.

Without a word, Itachi gathered Sakura in his arms, cradling her affectionately. Sakura gave a soft yelp, and a layer of pink immediately washed over her face as she was pressed against a firm and chisel chest. He patted her head gently and laced his fingers through her soft, petal hair as he sighed against her ear, giving in. "In the future, you will properly learn the art of swordsmanship before jumping recklessly in a fight."

"Hey! I saved your life!" The fierce, energetic medic protested, lightly pushing against Itachi's chest to look him into the eyes.

"Yes, almost at the expense of yours."

Sakura turned her face sideways, looking away guiltily. Itachi cradled her in his embrace again before pulling back. "Go back to rest now." He lightly pushed the pink-haired patient down from her sitting position. "I shall tend to the report now that I am assured of the wellbeing of my medic."

The possessive from the little word _my_ made Sakura blush as she gave him a small nod, seeing him off with her eyes. It wasn't until later, when she was alone in the boring white room, staring at the blank ceiling, when she realized that it was _Itachi_ who had initiated their contact earlier with his embrace. A smile bloomed on her face as the skin he touched tingled warmly.

—

"Mikoto?" Fugaku called out from his seat at the kitchen table.

"Hm?" Standing next to the sizzling pan, the young looking mother of two replied, carefully flipping the sunny-side-up egg with her spatula.

"Are you aware of our older son being in a relationship of any sort?"

"Not really." She said as she scooped the ready egg onto a plate and placed it gently in front of her husband before taking a seat across from him. "Did you hear anything interesting?" She inquired, curious.

"Nothing really important." He shook his head as he took a bite of his breakfast.

"Oh." Mikoto murmured, slightly crestfallen. But her mood immediately took a better turn when she remembered her pink-haired almost daughter. "Honey, Sakura-chan recently came back from a mission with Itachi-kun. I invited her over for dinner tonight." Then, she almost jumped out of her seat as she exclaimed, "Oh! I think our salmon supply ran out! I should go prepare for tonight then!"

"Hn." Fugaku responded as he took another bite of his egg, his mind mulling over the most recent gossip he received.

—

The delicious aroma of Mikoto's cooking filled Sakura's hungry nostril, and she skidded swiftly through the Uchiha compound halls yet again to speedily arrive at the brightly lit kitchen. Her arrival was greatly announced when she clumsily crashed against the wall, having all four raven-haired heads turn around to stare at her. Sakura blushed lightly as she managed to pick herself back onto her feet, smoothed her shirt, and extended her arms in a dramatic fashion before exclaiming, "Ta-da!"

Mikoto broke into giggles and she got up from her seat to embrace the younger girl, but stopped mid-track when her older son beat her to the petal-haired girl. Sakura blushed madly as he laced his fingers through her bangs to examine the small red bump forming, his thumb brushed against it gently as he commented amusingly, "I thought the roof was definitely going to fall when that hard forehead of yours crashed into one of the important pillars."

"Hey! That wasn't nice." Sakura puffed her cheeks defiantly but cutely. Sasuke choked on his water upon hearing their conversation. "Did he just attempt to make a joke?" The remaining Uchiha trio could only stare wide-eye at the small display of affection in front of them, completely shocked and at a loss of words.

"So the rumor was true." Fugaku commented, amused. Mikoto stared at her husband, perplexed by the situation at hand.

"Can someone explain the situation to me?"

Fugaku opened his mouth to speak. "Just this morning, I received rumors that our son is engaged in a relationship with one no other than Haruno Sakura-san. It was said that they had been seen appearing together quite often in the clearings, and that Itachi had recently made her his squad's permanent medic. This rumor was as well confirmed by the lovely Yamanaka Ino-san."

Mikoto's eyes became as wide as saucers as her mind slowly wrap around the jumble of new information that her husband had just fed her. She turned her head towards the couple at the door, and blurted excitedly, "Is it true?"

"Well…" Sakura trailed off, her blush becoming a shade darker. She turned towards Itachi with desperate eyes, asking for help and wishing that he would say something, but all he did was interlace her fingers with his. Apparently, it was enough for Mikoto.

Mikoto squealed excitedly as she pounced on the bashful young girl, hugging her tightly, squeezing the air out of the poor girl. Then, she dragged the girl to a seat next to her (but unfortunately across from Itachi) as they prepare to start dinner, relentlessly inquiring about the relationship. Suddenly, Fugaku clears his throat, gaining everyone's attention before asking, "Itachi, shall we be expecting a wedding sometime soon in the near future?"

Itachi froze and Sakura blurted out a loud "No!"

Fugaku turned his quizzical eyes at Sakura, and since she was seated next to the Uchiha leader, the proximity and his stern eyes made Sakura gulp. "Pray tell, Sakura-san, are you declaring that you won't marry the Uchiha heir?"

"No! I mean, yes. I mean, maybe in the future…" Sakura stuttered, trailed off uncertainly, not really knowing how to answer without angering the proud leader.

Fugaku narrowed his eyes at Sakura's answer, and further inquired, "Are you saying that you are merely teasing the Uchiha heir?"

"No! Definitely not, Fugaku-ji!" Sakura exclaimed, shaking her head. "I would never do that!"

"Well then," Fugaku clapped his hands together with a smile. "If he had your devotion, then there shall be no problem. I personally favor a spring wedding."

"No!"

"What's wrong with you and 'no's today, dear?"

"Ahh!" Sakura cried out, exasperated. "Fugaku-ji, allow me to be rude, but the Uchiha prodigy heir person right here," she pointed to the male across from her. "is utterly, completely, undeniably a social retard!"

Defending his pride, Itachi sent Sakura a cold glare as he cleared his throat and warned with a sharp and clipped voice, "Sakura."

"No, you stay out of this." She directed her own fierce glare at the raven-haired male before turning back to Fugaku and continuing.

"I don't want to jump to the conclusion. Itachi is still very naïve in this area of social networking and relationships, and I don't want him to get straight to the end without experiencing all the in between." Sakura inhaled deeply. "What if I'm not the one for him? What if he decides that there's another person better suited for the Uchiha heir that the little me? So far I'm the only female who's had the nerve to approach your ice-cube of a son. But if that barrier melts away later, there will be so many possibilities! There are just too many 'what-if's for me to accept the suit if Itachi were to choose to propose now."

Unashamed by her outburst, Sakura stared directly into the dangerous eyes of Uchiha Fugaku, prepared to take on any kind of punishment he decided to lash out at her. What she didn't expect, however, was for Fugaku, the great Uchiha clan leader, to throw his head back and break into a fit of unrestrained laughs. He wiped the tears from his eyes, and directed his attention at Itachi. "Son, you've got a good woman right here. Hold onto this one, it may be your only chance at something this rare, warm, loving, and pure-hearted."

"I will, father." Itachi nodded, shooting Sakura smirk.

Fugaku then directed his attention at the pink-haired girl and patted her hand gently. "I leave my social retard…" Fugaku declared, adopting her phrase. "…of a son in your hands, Haruno Sakura."

Sakura's jaws dropped. _Weren't they listening to me at all?_

All Sakura could do was gape at the four Uchihas at the table.

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…_to be continued.

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This chapter was kindly beta-ed by The Lady Massacre.

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Author's Note:

I'm sorry for the late update! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. School's off, and now I have lots of free time (until late September!). I'll try to keep up a semi-consistent update, unless another writer's block hits me. I hope not. Heehee. :)

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_Love it? Hate it? Plot suggestions? Just want to talk?_

_Post a review or drop a PM, I'd love to get to know you. :)_


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